Driving-gear for vehicles.



L. GOODHART.

DRWSNG GEAR FOR VEHICLES. nPPLlcumn FILED me. x5. uns.

Patented J une 11,A 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET i.

L. GODHART.

DRIVING GEAR `,FR VEHICLES.

pPLlcATmN man 1AN.15.1918.

1,268,960. Patented June 11. 1918 El 26 35 gg, 3

0 0 6 l 2 o /6 o A UNITED sTATEs PATEnT omnes;

LOUIS GOODHART, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO ONE TRUCK COMPANY,

OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MISSOURI. p

DRIVING-GEAR Folk-VEHICLES.

Specication of Lett'rs Patent.

Patented .time 11, 191s.

Applicationlled January 15, 1,9518. Serial No. 211,933.

To ald whom it may concern.'

the draft- Be it known that l, Louis GooDuAu'r, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Driving-(tear for Vehicles.y of which thefollowing is a full, clear, ari exact description, reference being hadto lie accompanying drawings, forming a parl hereof.

The present improvement is directed in particular to driving ear tortractors and other self-propelled ve iicles having a single driing ortraction wheel in connection wlth a rotatable carriage by which thevehicle is steered. The object of the invention is to provide a simpledrive and one A[reduced to the minimum number of part; which can bedisposed conveniently and to tli best advantage in a tractor having tbe. carriage and dri\ ing wheel above referr d to. l A further object isto provide a drivew'iich will cause an even distribution ot' thestresses through the axle and the traction w`1eel supported thereby, adrive whose component parts are readily accessil'ile' and one possessingfurther and other a vantages better apparent trom the following detaileddescription in connecten with the accompanying drawings in which- Figure1 represents a side elevation of a tractor haringr my inventifn appliedthereto; Fig. 2 is a top plan tiereof; Fig. 3 is a verticalcross-section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. l is au enlarged verticallongitudinal section on the line L1.-*4 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 5 isavertical longitudinal sectional detail ol' the housinr for the wormdrive,

the worm pinion an( worm wheel being in side elevation.

lteferrin to the drawings, D represents graine of the tractor the sameterminatin at the forward end in a ring 1 surmountc by a gear-ring 2,the dra l't-ring 1 having mounted rotatably therein the carriage ring 3secured to, or forming part ot` the carriage frame] C wliich supportsthe engine ll, the cab lli, the steering stall' S, the steering wheel lVand all the appurtenances which go to t'orm a complete driving andsteering mechanism for the carriage o'r .member to which the draft-frameis attached. The lower end of the steering rod (not shown) terminates ina pinion 4 meshingr with the gear-ring 2, whereby when rotation isimparted to the steering wheel W tion to t e carriage, and steering thevehicle. i

Disposed centrally within the carriage-ring 3 is a driving andsteering-wheel comprising two wheel sections 5, 5, secured in anymechanical manner to a central drum 6, the said drum being provided withhub terminals G over which the wheel sections 5 are passed, said hubterminals likewise provid- 1n g suitable raoeways for the ball (orroller) bearings 7 which directly support the wheel axle A from the endsof which are suspended the links S to which are in turn secured thecarriage supporting springs 9, the latter being preferably connected lothe carriage by the spring pads 10 and l1 bolted or otherwise secured tothe carriage ring. The rear end of the draft-frame` is provided withstraps 1:2 for coupling the tractorto any independent vehicle or traileras understood in the art. ln the present example the tractor in additionto the front driving and steering wheel is provided with rear runningwheels R, R, as shown. The carriage frame is provided with brackets 13,13, from which lead tension or torque rods 14, 14, the front ends of therods being secured to the sleeves 15 passed over the axle A. To one sideof the driving wheel (preferably to the lefthand wheel section lookingtoward the front of the vehicle) l is secured an emergency brake, -d rum16 the brake mechanism of which is controlled from the emergency brakelever 17 through any set of well known connections not necessary toeither detail or describe.

With theexception of the drivingr wheel,

thc parts above described and others showny but. not referred to, arewell known and no claim thereto is made herein. T, represents thetransmission case, the transmission shaft 18 in the present embmlimentot'my invention terminatimer at the real' end in a worm pinion l!) whichmeshes with a worm wheel 2t) mounted to rotate in a vertical plane, a.suitable housing 2l being provided l'or these parts. 'lhe worm wheel 20is carried by a countershul't 22 which is supported by a bracket 25S andby the walls of the holising 2l. the bracket 23 being provided with anextension arm 23' for the support ot' one end of a parallel rock-shaft2l the opposite end of which is supported by lll the housing 21. Thesaid rock-shaft operates the service brake 25 of the brake-drum 26carried. by the counter-shaft 2Q, the rockshaft being itself` actuatedfrom the brake pedal 27 through any set oi intermediate connections asshown but not necessary to describe because well understood in the art.Secured to the countershaft 22, and disposed in the vertical plane otthe longitudinal aXis of the vehicle, and in alinement with the centerof the drinn Grmipling together the wheel sections 5, 5, is a sprocketwheel, or inion 28 from which leads a sprocket chain 29, said chainpassing over the teeth of a band 30 carried by or secured to theperiphery of the drum 6, the chain traveling` 1n a vertical planeparallel to the axis of the transmission shaft 18 and between the twowheel sections 5, 5, as shown. The lower portion of the sprocket chain2f) moreover passes through the opening of the carriage ring 3,intersecting, or cutting across the horizontal plane of rotation of saidring, or across the horizontal plane of rotation of the carriage frame Cto which said ring is secured and of which it may be considered a part.The disposition of the drive-chain is such as to clear the walls of thecarriagering and its appurtenances, leaving the chain. accessible fortaking up the slack or shortening the same or for purposes of repair.The driving mechanism in thc present embodiment of my invention may besaid to comprise a power transmission or drive shaft (18) on one side ofthe driving wheel disposed parallel to the rotation plane of said wheel,a countershaft (22) disposed in the rear of the driving wheel at rightangles to the rotation plane thereof, and a sprocket drive chain (29)disposed between the wheel sections and operating in a plane parallel tothe axis of the drive-shaft. This plane under the arrangement describedis substantially the central plane of rotation of the driving Wheel,that is to say, the central plane between the wheel sections 5, 5,between which the chain operates. In the present construction too, therotation axis of the driving wheel is disposed substantially in theplane ofv rotation of the carriage ring 3, I may of course depart fromthe details here shown without in any Wise atiectin the nature or spiritof the invention. llgeatures shown but not alluded to are Well known andrequire no description in the present connection.

Having described my invention what I claim isl. In a tractor, a draftframe, a carriage coupled rotatably to said frame and provided with ahorizontally disposed ring, a traction wheel comprising two wheelsections spaced apart, and a drum connecting said sections disposedcentrally within the carriage ring, the axis of rotation of the Wheelbeing disposed substantially in the plane of rotation of the carriagering, a drive shaft on the carriage disposed parallel to the rotationplane oi the traction Wheel, a countershaft leading from the drive shaftand disposed at right angles thereto, and a drive chain or belt disposedin the plane of rotation of the traction wheel, leading from the countershaft to thc drum between the sections of said wheel, the drive belthaving portions thereof extending into the carriage ring andintersecting the rotation plane thereof.

2. In a tractor, a rotatable cai-ria fe frame provided with ahorizontally rotatalile ring, a centrally located traction wheel in saidringl comprising two wheel sections spaced apart, a central drumconnecting said wheel sections, a drive-shaft on the carriage frame onone side of the traction wheel disposed parallel to said wheel, a.counter shaft leading from the drive-shaft, and a sprocketchain-driveleading 'from the counter shaft to the drum of the tractionwheel, said chain extending into the carriage rin at an angle to theplane of rotation of t e ring, and being disposed on the centrallongitudinal axis of the carriage frame.

3. In a tractor, a suitable draft-member, a carriage provided with aring mounted for horizontal rotation relatively to the draft, member, adriving wheel in the center of said ring comprising two wheel sections,a spacing member or drum joining said sec-- tions. an axle for saidwheel, means for securing the carriage to the axle, a driveshaft on thecarriage dis osed on oneside of the driving wheel anY parallel thereto,a countershaft actuated by the drive-shaft and disposed at right anglesthereto, and a final driving member leading from the counter-shaftbetween the wheel sections into the carriage ring and intersecting theplane of rotation of said ring, the said driv-V ing member beingdisposed parallel to the drive-shaft and substantially in the plane otthe longitudinal axis of the vehicle.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

t LOUIS GOODHART, Witnesses:

EMIL STAREK, Elsa M. Smart.

